


The End (Is Just the Beginning)

by Jen425



Series: For The Republic [12]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: ...Kinda, ...s, Alternate Universe - Anakin Skywalker Doesn't Turn to the Dark Side, Anakin Skywalker Needs a Hug, Anakin is an Idiot, F/M, Final Battle, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts, Force-Sensetive Fives, Gen, Human Disaster Anakin Skywalker, I still hate the Jedi, M/M, Multi, Order 66, Suicide Attempt, The 501st love their General, these tags are a mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-20 14:02:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13719210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jen425/pseuds/Jen425
Summary: “[I have begun the messages, Anakin-Skywalker,]” Artoo beeps, “[Are you off to fight Palpatine-Sidious now?]”Anakin forces a cocky smile onto his face.“Yes I am, buddy.”Artoo beeps approvingly.“[Good,]” he beeps, “[Palpatine-Sidious messed with your systems. I will comm you when I am ready.]”Anakin nods, turning around to begin to make his way up to the top floor of the senate building.“Got it,” he says, “See you soon.”“[Do not die!]”





	The End (Is Just the Beginning)

**Author's Note:**

> Here you go, folks.

Despite the unrest all around them, the leaders of the Loyalists are calm, standing together in the Alderaan box. Of the three of them, only one is entirely aware of what is coming, but he is trusted by his allies enough that his calm keeps them secure as well.

 

But the one is not as calm as he appears. While, yes, he knows what is coming, he also understands that it is beyond what anyone could possibly imagine.

 

But, of course, Bail Organa is much more experienced at this than his two closest allies. He gives nothing away.

  
  


Mace wonders what it was in Skywalker’s voice that had him calling the Council Meeting, what strange urge of the Force that put him here. Perhaps it was the endless barrage of shatterpoints cracked straight through that have surrounded Skywalker since his rescue, perhaps it may have been the looking his eyes, more serious and certain than ever before, perhaps, even, it was simply the will of the Force.

 

But, whatever it was, Mace was absolutely sure that it was important. (He carefully avoids looking at Obi-Wan. Whatever reason it was that Skywalker had for not turning to him, it wasn’t his business. In a way, it was an added certainty. You see, because Skywalker had _not_ chosen Obi-Wan, then he was clearly thinking past his attachments.)

  
  


He feels it in the air. A sudden shift, a mystery change. He knows even before he’s told.

 

Order 66 is coming. Soon.

 

And abstracts are one thing, Fives knows, but reality is a completely different can of worms.

 

He may even have to kill a brother.

  
  


“[I have begun the messages, Anakin-Skywalker,]” Artoo beeps, “[Are you off to fight Palpatine-Sidious now?]”

 

Anakin forces a cocky smile onto his face.

 

“Yes I am, buddy.”

 

Artoo beeps approvingly.

 

“[Good,]” he beeps, “[Palpatine-Sidious messed with your systems. I will comm you when I am ready.]”

 

Anakin nods, turning around to begin to make his way up to the top floor of the senate building.

 

“Got it,” he says, “See you soon.”

 

“[Do not die!]”

  
  


The holoprojection flickers on, and the whole room gasps as a giant version of General Skywalker, Hero With No Fear fills the room. Were it not for the new scars on his left cheek and fading into his hairline, he would look no different than he had prior to his capture by the Separatists.

 

Bail, however, remains unsurprised. When Mon and Padme turn to him, he merely nods to the projection.

 

“Our reliable source,” he says.

 

Then Anakin begins to speak.

  
  


_“Hello, Masters,”_ the projection says, and a small part of Mace wonders how Skywalker had managed to hack into the Council Room, but he quickly squashes the thought, not truly wanting to know.

 

_“I am here to tell you the worst news in your life.”_

  
  


_The Chancellor is the Sith Lord_ . It’s a terrifying thought that hadn’t truly register until now. It makes Fives _growl_ . All those brothers dead in a _sham war_. Hardcase, Hevy, Droidbait, Cutup…

 

Echo.

 

Someone needs to go to the Senator. He’s heard his _Jetii’s_ tone of voice too many times to miss it.

 

The last thing General Skywalker needs right now is to worry about his _cyare_.

  
  


Anakin’s a good couple of floors up, by now. He barely holds off from running.

 

Now is the time for patience, for calm. He has to be the Jedi that so many believe he can be, if only for a moment.

 

He passes the Alderaan box, and the familiar presences urge him onwards.

 

(Onwards to his death.)

  
  


_“...I have a wife, you see,”_ the hologram continues, _“A wonderful woman who means the Galaxy to me. It’s not the Jedi way, but I love her, and she loves me. The Sith Lord and Dooku tried to use that against us, but my wife, wonderful woman that she is, made the choice I never could… and, while she left me in the hands of Count Dooku, she also allowed me the opportunity to overhear a very important conversation, where I learned these horrible truths…”_

 

Bail forces himself not to look at Padme at those words. While the true nature of their relationship was clear to those close to the senator and Jedi pair, most did not see it. (He carefully didn’t think about all of the gossip on the “true nature” of Kenobi-and-Skywalker’s relationship.)

 

And, similarly, the details of Greivous’ capture were anything but common knowledge. The official report had General Skywalker’s capture nearly two weeks after the Separatist commander.

  
  


_“...And I also had a vision,”_ Skywalker’s hologram continues after a pause, somehow having anticipated the waves of outrage and shocked outcries from his announcement, _“I had a vision where Sidious would corrupt me, convince me that I could save her with the powers of the Dark Side… instead, I kill everyone that I want to love.”_

 

There’s something more there, Mace knows, but the what remains a mystery.

 

That’s okay, he’ll question Skywalker about it soon enough.

  
  


Fives finds Artoo plugged in to the main control console.

 

“[Senator-Handmaiden-Queen is in the Alderaan pod. 32nd floor, pod 3257.]”

 

Unsurprisingly, Artoo is ready for him. He nods his head sharply.

 

“I’ll be up there as quickly as I can.”

  
  


“And now,” Anakin mutters grimly, “Please allow me to introduce the traitor within our midst.”

 

The doors of the Chancellor’s office slide open.

 

“I’ll see you on the other side.”

  
  


The hologram blinks out, and the entire Senate gasps again as the hoverscreens rise to replace the hologram, opening onto the sight of the office of none other than… Chancellor Palpatine.

 

 _“Chancellor Palpatine,”_ says Skywalker on the screen, as clear as he can be, and playing quite purposefully to the cameras, _“You are under arrest for conspiring with the Separatists, and I am to take you into custody of the Jedi as according to the laws of the Republic on the matter of all trained Force-Sensitive individuals.”_

 

The Chancellor looks surprised.

 

 _“Anakin?”_ He asks, _“What’s wrong? There must be some sort of misunderstanding. You know me, and I’m certainly not a Sith Lord.”_

 

Skywalker smirks.

 

 _“I never said that,”_ he says, “ _And we are currently being watched by both the Senate and the Council, as well, so right now, you have two options. You can either reveal yourself, and loose all of the power that you have gained in the Republic, but_ maybe _not your life, or…”_

  
  


_“You can let me kill you, still pretending to be a kindly old man. I have no authorization from anyone to be here, so my killing you won’t affect the Order, although I simultaneously_ do _have authority due to the Order.”_

 

More flares of shock and quiet mutterings fill the room. Mace just sighs, turning to Obi-Wan, who’s shields did far too little to hide the writhing ball of sorrow and self-hatred filling the younger Master.

 

On the screen, The mirage of “Chancellor Palpatine” disappears, replace by the terrifying expression of something pure evil.

 

_“So be it, then.”_

  
  


Fives enters the pod just as Palpatine lights his red sabers and gasps fill the room.

 

“Senators,” he says. They turn around in surprise, none moreso than Senator Amidala herself.

 

“Fives?” she asks, “What are you doing here?”

 

“Never settled the bet,” he explains, “And General Kenobi’s got his own men. The last thing the General needs right now is to worry about his cyare.”

 

Amidala gasps. She understands his underlying meaning.

 

“He…”

 

Fives turns away.

 

“I’ve heard that tone of voice before… I’m sorry.”

 

It finally dawns on the others just what he meant. Organa’s face saddens.

 

(On the screen, Palpatine looses a saber. He gets his revenge in the form of a stab through Skywalker’s shoulder, and the Jedi cries out in pain.)

 

“Padme…”

 

Amidala’s eyes harden. Kriff.

 

“I need to get up there,” she says.

 

“Senator-“

 

“ _Now_ , Trooper. I will go with or without you.”

 

Fives sighs.

 

“Stubborn idiots, both of them. No wonder they’re together.”

 

“What was that?” Amidala asks. Fives just shook his head.

 

“Nothing, Ma’am. Let’s go.”

  
  


Anakin doesn’t focus on the pain, lets it fade away as he goes after Sidious with everything that he has. He wonders if anyone has figured it out, yet. If Obi-Wan or Padme are trying to save him.

 

They don’t understand how _he’s_ saving _them_.

 

The fight continues.

  
  


Palpatine is brought to his knees, and Skywalker smiles.

 

Two blades, red and blue.

 

Two blades, Light and Dark.

 

Bail may not be a Jedi, but he sees the significance.

  
  


Uneasy fills the Council room as Skywalker laughs.

 

 _“‘A Jedi does not kill an unarmed opponent,’”_ he says, before lifting Sidious up to standing once more, and stabbing both blades through the Sith Lord’s chest.

 

_“You have arms.”_

 

Then, he powers down the sabers, and drops Sidious and his ‘saber to the floor.

  
  


“Is there no way to get in?”Amidala asks, and Fives can hear the desperation in her voice. The clones guarding the Chancellor are dechipped, he can tell, but his General probably ordered them not to interfere.

 

“We can’t, Ma’am,” one of them says, “The doors are locked from both directions.”

 

“Surely there must be something-“

 

“Nothing that we know of. The General has locked the room with the Force.”

 

Fives hesitantly puts a hand on Amidala’s shoulder.

 

Then he hears his General’s voice crying out in pain, heavily muffled by the door, and feels a wave of pain that isn’t his own. Padme runs towards it.

 

“Ani!”

  
  


Sidious is dying, and Anakin is sure that that’s the only reason that the saber missed his heart, instead burying itself in his side.

 

But Sidious was a politician, and Anakin knew that this was merely a distraction.

 

Sure enough, he turns around to see Sidious smiling.

 

“Execute Order 66,” he says.

 

Anakin smirks.

 

“Too. Late.”

  
  


The screens go dark, and mass panic grips the room. In a desperate attempt to restore order, Bail sends his pod out into the center of the room.

 

“Silence!” He calls, “Do you not see what we are doing? Right now, as we debate, our allies, the Jedi, are losing their lives by a traitor to the Republic. Are we to let the Republic fall apart, now?”

 

His words begin to register, and quiet descends upon the room once more.

 

“What would you have us do?” Calls a Senator that he isn’t instantly familiar with.

 

“We need to cancel Order 66.”

  
  


From the moment that the screen went dark, silence has filled the room as the Jedi Council waited for the other shoe to drop.

 

Eventually, it did, in the form of a Clone bursting into the Council chambers.

 

“Generals!” The Clone yells, “Chancellor Palpatine’s called Order 66, and all the brothers we haven’t de-chipped yet are coming to kill every Force Sensitive in the Temple!”

 

 _No_.

  
  


The door finally opens, and Amidala runs in like a rocket. On the floor lay the bodies of the Chancellor and his murderer. The world feels lighter and darker all at once, and Fives knows that the reasons lay on the ground before him.

 

He prays that his General can hold out until medics get here because General Skywalker deserves so much better than a suicidal sacrifice.

  
  


Unlocking the door had sapped the last of Anakin’s strength. The last thing he sees is the face of his wife.

 

Please, let this be the end.

  
  


Never before had anything in the Senate moved so quickly. Still shaken from the events that they had witnessed, the Senators flock like nerfs to the most powerful leader in the room. Perhaps, if Bail was still as new to the Senate as his allies, he would have been disgusted.

 

As it is, he works it to his advantage.

 

In less than 24 hours, he finds himself Supreme Chancellor.

 

In less than 12 hours, he rescinds Order 66.

 

And, somehow, he knows that this is only beginning.

  
  


Hours after the battle, Mace takes in the carnage. Clone and Jedi bodies alike have been taken to prepare for their funerals. Outside the Temple, there have already been nearly a hundred reported Jedi casualties…

 

And it could have been so much worse.

 

“It’s not pretty to look at the casualties from friendly fire, is it sir?”

 

Mace turns around, recognizing the speaker’s armor as that of Skywalker’s captain… commander… second-in-command.

 

“What can I do for you?” he asks. The other man removes his helmet.

 

“I’m just here to make sure that my General gets both the leeway and the credit that he deserves.”

 

Hm…

 

“Go on.”

 

“Well, I would first like to tell you that it was General Skywalker who discovered the chips,” the man says, “and God knows why he told us to help the Jedi out first in this mess because you treat him and General Kenobi like _kark_ , but he did.”

 

What?

 

“Master Kenobi requests extra work, yes, but we treat Skywalker the same as any other Jedi Knight,” Mace says.

 

The Clone just huffs

 

“If you say so, sir, but I’m still not sure.”

 

“And why is that?”

 

The Clone returns his helmet to its proper place on his head.

 

“Because I think that you would have noticed if any other Jedi Knight was planning to kill himself. I sure did.”

 

And, with that, the Clone turns around and walks away. Mace doesn’t even think to call after him, lost in thought.

 

_Planning to kill himself..._

 

Had they truly missed so much? Skywalker had never been typical, yes, but…

 

They’d never truly even given him a chance, had they.

  
  


Amidala returns to the Temple the moment the emergency Senate session ends, tired and now the Vice-Chair of the Senate (whatever that means). Fives, who had by now been guarding her for almost 24 hours, watches as she puts her hand to the glass of his General’s bacta tank.

 

“They never think about what it’s like to be the one left behind,” he says, and she starts, as if surprised to see him there. Fives looks down, turning to leave. He was obviously intruding, and the Vice-Chair didn’t need a bodyguard here in the center of the Jedi Temple. Hey hadn’t meant to say that out loud, anyways.

 

“I’m sorry, ma’am; that wasn’t my place. I’ll just be seeing myself ou-“

 

“Who did you loose?”

 

Now it was his own turn to spin around quickly.

 

“What?”

 

“Oh,” Amidala says with a gasp “I’m sorry, did that come out cruel? I just…”

 

Fives just smiles, sadly, taking off his bucket.

 

“He was my batchmate, Echo,” he says, “The rest of Domino died when we were still Shinies, and… well, let’s just say that I understand what you’re going through, Ma’am.”

 

Amidala’s eyes soften.

 

“I’m sorry for your loss,” she says, and Fives shrugs.

 

“It’s been nearly eight months, now. I’m coping.”

 

“Even so, I’m sorry.”

  
  


He sees it, now. The Force. He reaches towards it, ready for the end…

 

Instead, it pulls him forwards…

 

Forwards to the future, a long time ago and in a Galaxy far, far away...

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even know what to say about this one except YES! It's finally done!
> 
> Thank you for reading this, there is still more to come. Please Comment?
> 
> find me on tumblr [@flaim-ita](https://flaim-ita.tumblr.com/)


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